Tuesday, February 14. 2012

Today is a banner day for owners of many kinds of retail stores—restaurants and bars, jewelry, candy and flower shops—but it’s also fraught with dichotomy. They adore the revenue but curse the zaniness and difficulty of managing and delivering so much on one day.

A front-page story in yesterday’s USA Today included these facts:• Valentine’s Day is second to Christmas in consumer spending.• Average celebrants will spend about $126, up 8.5% from 2011.• Men will spend about $169 vs. about $86 for women.• Total spending is estimated at $17.6 billion.

Who doesn’t enjoy a nice meal out? Some of my dearest relatives and friends would love a bauble or two while others would welcome something chocolate. But I’m partial to flowers…either the roses or tulips would be lovely.